Imaging Pattern and Features of Esophageal Cancer at Tikur Anbessa Specialized Tertiary Hospital in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: A Cross Sectional Study

Abstract

Abstract Background Different modalities of imaging are used for the diagnosis, staging, treatment decision-making, assessment of treatment response, and post-treatment surveillance of esophageal cancer. However, there is limited knowledge of the imaging patterns and features of esophageal cancer in Ethiopia. This study assessed the imaging patterns and features of esophageal cancer at Tikur Anbessa Specialized Tertiary Hospital in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from February 27, 2018 to February 28, 2019 to examine the imaging tests of patients. The results of these imaging tests were analyzed to observe patterns and features such as the size, location and structures affected by the tumor, as well as the involvement of lymph nodes and metastasis sites.Result This study recruited 230 esophageal cancer patients and found that 97% of them underwent endoscopy, 96% underwent chest CT scan, 62.2% underwent barium swallow imaging, and 93% underwent abdominopelvic ultrasonography scanning. The most common primary tumor site was the lower thoracic region, with a mean mass length of 6.9 cm. Endoscopic evaluation revealed that 79.1% of patients had a mass, with exophytic mass being the most frequent feature. Additionally, the most commonly invaded organ was the aorta (occurring in 45.2% of cases), while 96 (41.7%) of patients had lymph node involvement and 119 (51.7%) had distant metastases to other organs.Conclusion Chest CT, endoscopy, barium swallow, and AUS were the most commonly used imaging modalities for esophageal cancer in Ethiopia. The lower thoracic region was the primary tumor site, and there was frequent lymph node and distant metastases. The study also highlighted the limitations of the setup, as none of the patients were able to benefit from EUS and 18F-FDG PET technology.